February 6, 2012 marked the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the Throne. To commemorate this historic occasion Canada created the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal which will be awarded to 60,000 successful nominees from across Canada. Member of Parliament Ted Hsu has the honour and privilege of presenting this award to 30 recipients in Kingston and the Islands. He invites members of the Kingston community to nominate people from all walks of life and of all ages who have committed volunteer time to the enrichment of our community, the wider Canadian community or the world.

The Governor General’s office published the following criteria for eligibility. The nominee must:

Be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada, but need not necessarily reside in Canada;

Have made a significant contribution to a particular province, territory, region or community within Canada, or an achievement abroad that brings credit to Canada; and

Have been alive on February 6th, 2012, the 60th anniversary of Her Majesty’s accession to the Throne. The medal can be awarded posthumously, as long as the recipient was alive on that date.

The medal will acknowledge people who volunteer or whose activities go above and beyond the call of duty. At Mr. Hsu’s request, the committee will give extra attention to finding nominees that might, until now, have been relatively unheralded but are deserving of recognition for their service.

A volunteer committee composed of distinguished members of our community will review all suggested nominations. The committee’s focus will be on Mr. Hsu’s constituency, Kingston and the Islands. The committee will be free to find and decide on nominees as they wish. Nominees, committee members and their deliberations will remain confidential. Successful nominations will be forwarded to the Office of the Governor General for final approval. Mr. Hsu will present the medals in ceremonies in the riding.

Nomination letters must include the full name, address, phone number and email address (if available) of the nominator AND the nominee and a one-page outline of the nominee’s activities and achievements. Nomination forms are also available in Mr. Hsu’s office. Nomination deadline EXTENDED to May 15, 2012. Further criteria and information on the Diamond Jubilee Medal can be found at www.gg.ca